Journal of Alternative Perspectives in the Social Sciences(2014)Volume 5 No 4, 683-705
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Celebrating Robin Hood in Modern Border
Ballads
Dr. Delilah Dotremon, Alabama State University
Dr. Ruben Gonzalez, Alabama State University
Abstract: This article undertakes an analysis of an original folk ballad
known as a “narcocorrido” which is a genre with roots along the Texas
border but whose popularity spans the entire country. The protagonist is
Mexican or Mexican-American and very much like Robin Hood as these
odes have a strong cultural impact. These ballads serve to entertain and
they also educate the public about criminality as narcocorridos carry a
strong moral message especially for the young.
Key Words: folk ballad, narcocorrido, Robin Hood, drug traffickers,
drug seizures
1. Introduction
The modern day version of Robin Hood has a Mexican
protagonist and his exploits are contained in musical tales
called “corridos” yet the details of these songs are near
identical to the well-known legend of old. An impoverished
young man turns to crime out of desperation, that he makes
a living trafficking drugs only adds to his luster and mythappeal for the people of South Texas. This Mexican Robin
Hood takes from the rich, outwits the Border Patrol, has
more weapons than U.S. Customs, and can run circles
around the DEA. Yet, these story songs also inform the
listener about the harsh realities of drug dealing and usage
and the tragic end that is predestined. The National Institute
on Drug Abuse has conservatively estimated that illegal
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drugs account for $110 billion in revenue yet 50,000 drugrelated deaths occur each year estimates the Office of
National Drug Control Policy (2013) in their Drug Data
Summary. Every part of our society is affected. The Texas
Commission on Alcohol and Drug Use (2013) has reported
that 34% of Texas students in grades 7th through 12th have
admitted to using illicit drugs. But, who reads the statistics?
Yet people do listen to music and narcocorridos are very
popular. The narcocorridos serve to provide invaluable
cultural impact as they are used to entertain, to educate
listeners about drugs and a criminal lifestyle, and they offer
moral guidance in the form of modern legends.
While the legend of Robin Hood has been around since
medieval times it continues to hold the attention of young
and old alike. Notable historical authorities such as David
Baldwin (2013) and John W. Walker (1973) are in agreement
that Robin Hood did exist and that the main features of the
tale are based on documentary evidence. Robin Hood can be
said to be the most memorable figure in the history of
medieval England and he continues to live in nursery and
elementary school classrooms around the globe. The tale is
one that is well-known but let us review the main elements:
Robin Hood while hunting on the King’s land is caught
poaching game yet his major offense is hunger. Having been
branded a thief he turns to becoming a highway man who
leads a band of merry men and takes on the profession of
robbing the rich and giving to the poor. This is quite a tale,
one that exalts the travails of the poor and its telling gives
unfortunates a reason to smile and pump their fists in the
air over the besting of their betters.
2. Robin Hood lives on in Corridos
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This tradition of storytelling lives on today. In South
Texas, in particular, as well as in heavily Hispanic areas of
the country one can turn on the radio and hear a modern
day version of Robin Hood. But, this is a Hispanic version so
the words are in Spanish but the message is near identical
to the well-known tale of the medieval hero. In the Mexican
version, a young boy is raised in grueling poverty and he is a
firsthand witness to the injustices that the rich heap on the
poor. His own family suffers as does his community and one
day he vows to change his lot in life and raise himself and
his family out of that poverty. He will be cunning and sly and
outwit those men of power and take the fruits of the land
long denied him and others like him. And, so is born a
modern day Mexican Robin Hood. Some details must change
because after all it is a modern tale, the King’s land may be
changed to the “King Ranch” but the basic idea remains. The
land is not owned by the poor, they are merely squatters,
renters, or transitory migrant farm workers who are at the
mercy of the King (the landowner) and the King’s men (the
sheriff, the police, the agents from the Border Patrol, or from
a host of state and federal criminal justice agencies). Barely
eking out a living in the land of plenty is enough to enrage
any noble heart, so the young Mexican man becomes a
robber taking from the rich and giving to the poor and yes he
helps himself along the way. It is only a short step from
becoming a robber to becoming a drug trafficker but even so
the poor view him as a hero, a modern day Mexican Robin
Hood.
The daring deeds of such young Mexican men become
fodder for the musical tales called “corridos” which
commemorate their brave exploits. These corridos about
drug trafficking were born along the U.S.-Mexican border
and are embraced enthusiastically by young and old alike.
Each song gives a brief history of an exploited young man
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who manages to turn the tables on life circumstances and so
change his fate. It matters little that the chosen route out of
poverty is drug trafficking. The details that are highlighted
are his bravery, his ability to overcome overwhelming odds,
and his incredible cunning which enables him to outwit all of
the King’s men time and again. These corridos leave a smile
on the faces of the Hispanic poor and are a good cause to
dance and sing. Robin Hood has struck again. Hurrah!
3. The Roots of Corridos and the Birth of
Narcocorridos
Corridos are a staple of Mexican culture as their roots go
back to the Spanish conquistadores in the 1500s that
brought their romantic verses with them (Collier A2). In the
1800s the corridos told the tales of Mexican war heroes
against the French and in the early 1900s the corridos
glamorized the Mexican revolutionary generals, the great
battles, and even the women who followed the soldiers notes
Collier. Traveling minstrels have sung corridos for hundreds
of years about assassinations, family feuds, daring bandits
on horseback, accidents, and personal tales of love, betrayal,
and revenge. Even today people on both sides of the border
can commission a composer or “corridista” to write a song
about their loved one in order to commemorate them.
The music is catchy and people enjoy singing the corridos
and dancing to them as well. A writer for the San Francisco
Chronicle described the music this way, “The tunes are singsongy and repetitive, with a simple up and down cadence, a
wheezy accordion and the vocalist’s usually nasal whine”
(Collier A2). The earliest known song about illicit substances
was written in 1933 and tells the tale of 3 tequila smugglers
who were killed by Texas Rangers during the time of
Prohibition in the United States. This type of song was
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unusual and did not become popular until 40 years later. It
was in the 1970s that a new genre was born- the
narcocorridos contends Collier. These ballads tell the tales of
drug traffickers and emphasize their bravery, their daring,
their disrespect for the law, their independence, their illgotten wealth, and their love for parents, family, friends, and
homeland as well as their tragically short lives. The corridos
follow the medieval style of the original Robin Hood tale yet
they are as avant-garde as modern gangsta rap.
4. Analysis of a Narcocorrido
Despite the headlines and publicity on drug trafficking
and the well-known impact of drug use in our society the
corridos remain popular music among the Hispanic poor. To
understand the allure of such songs one only has to examine
the lyrics of a narcocorrido. The ballads follow a similar
pattern as the opening refrain informs the listener they are
about to hear the legend of a modern day Robin Hood and
that his story will live forever. The refrains that follow tell the
life story of an extraordinary man who had the courage to
rise above humble origins to create his own kingdom. The
listener is filled with outrage at the injustices suffered by the
poor young man and feels a sense of pride that an
impoverished individual can through bravery and cunning
overcome tremendous odds. The ballad of course ends with
the tragic demise of the hero for that is the fate of one who is
larger than life and scoffs at the law.
The original song below was written by Mr. Arnulfo
Medrano Sr. and is entitled “Corrido de Cipriano Torres.” Mr.
Medrano is from Roma, Texas and he is a composer of
corridos and is often hired by locals to commemorate their
loved ones. This original song was used with permission of
the composer and it will be analyzed to better understand
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the popularity of the corridos as an in-depth analysis will aid
in the clarifying the various hidden messages contained
within such musical tales. This ballad is typical of the
narcocorridos that are so popular in Mexico and wherever
you find Hispanics in the United States. Next to the original
Spanish lyrics is an English translation.
Corrido de Cipriano Torres
Cipriano Torres alias “El Pata”
nacido de cuna pobre
en el pueblo de Los Guerras
creció y se fue haciendo hombre
en todo México y Tejas ya se escuchaba su nombre.
Cipriano Torres alias “The Foot”
from the cradle was born poor
in the small town of Los Guerras
he grew and became a man
in all of Mexico and Texas
people came to know his name.
Los judiciales lo respetaban
Law enforcement respected him
agentes y comandantes
agents and commanders
protegían a Cipriano por su valor y desplantes
protected Cipriano because of
era hombre de mil agallas
his valor and cavalier attitude
como no se había visto antes.
he was a man of much courage
like no one had seen before.
A ese penal del Topochico en un mal día cayó
He went to jail in Topochico as
Pero como tenía influenicas
one day he was arrested
el juez pruebas no le halló
but because he had influence
the judge found no evidence against
tuvieron que dejarlo libre a su pueblito vovlió.
him so they had to let him go free
and to his small town he returned.
Cuando salió del Topochico, como dos años pasaron After he got out of jail
secuestraron a su hijo, a José Luis se llevaron
almost two years passed
pagó quinientos mil dólares fue como lo rescataron.
his son Jose Luis was kidnapped
and taken he paid $500,000 dollars
that is how he rescued him.
Acompañado de dos amigos negocios iba arreglar
Accompanied by two friends
volaron desde McAllen a Houston fueron a dar
on business he had to attend to
y en el cuarto de un hotel se fueron a descansar:
they flew from McAllen to Houston
pero Cipriano no imaginaba lo que ese día pasaría
and went to a hotel room to rest
no pensó que en otro avión él ya muerto volvería,
but Cipriano could not have
causándoles grandes penas a su pueblo y su familia. imagined what would happen that
day to him. He never thought that by
Another plane and dead he would
return home causing great sorrow to
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Ya se nos fue un gran amigo
que todos recordaremos
se acabaron esas fiestas
donde no faltaba el dinero;
ya murió Cipriano “El Pata”
que Dios lo tenga en el cielo.
his town and his family.
A great friend has left us
we will always remember him
all those parties are over
at which money was plentiful
Cipriano “El Pata” is dead
may God have him in heaven.
The “Corrido de Cipriano Torres” is true to form as the
first stanza informs the listener he/she is about to hear the
story of “El Pata” who was born to a poor family in the small
town of Los Guerras but whose name became legend in
Mexico and Texas by the time he was a man. This is a story
song about a common man who was able to transform
himself into a legend on both sides of the border. In the
second stanza, the listener is told that law enforcement
officials not only respected Cipriano but they protected him
as well. His valor and cavalier attitude was admired by all.
This stanza clearly tells the listener that Cipriano Torres
lived as an outlaw and flaunted his criminal lifestyle. His
bravery and cunning not only earned him the respect of his
adversaries but their protection as well. In between the lines,
it is understood that while some of the respect was earned
by “El Pata’s” exploits that some of it was bought. This
Mexican Robin Hood was a man of great courage and “mil
agallas” and such a man is rarely seen the corridista points
out. The listener can only imagine the adventures of such a
daring outlaw. The alias “El Pata” (“The Foot”) was given to
Cipriano who time and again was able to outwit the King’s
men and walk out of danger unharmed.
In stanza three, the listener learns that on a very bad day
Cipriano was arrested and taken to the penal institution
called Topochico but due to his great influence (an
irresistible combination of charm and money) the judge
ended up saying they had no evidence against him. They had
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to let him go and Cipriano returned to his pueblo, a bigger
hero than before. In stanza four, the listener learns that “El
Pata” lived another two years of the good life after his release
from jail then his son was kidnapped. Rescuing the boy cost
Cipriano half-a-million dollars. This gives the listener a small
inkling as to the type of business that Cipriano Torres was
engaged in that he could afford to pay such a ransom.
Embedded in the verse is the deeper message that ill-gotten
gains will eventually cost you what you value most. Even
after this traumatic episode, Cipriano goes to Houston with
two friends to transact more “business”, just what this
business entails the corridista never spells out but they
listener knows. Cipriano never imagined that as he rested in
his hotel room that was to be his last day. “El Pata” never
guessed he would return to McAllen on another plane but
that he would return dead causing his family and his whole
town great sorrow. The composer does not reveal precisely
what happened to Cipriano Torres. Was he betrayed by his
friends? Was it a drug deal gone bad? Did the drug buyers
outwit the brave and cavalier Cipriano? Did law enforcement
agents get the better of the Mexican Robin Hood? The
listener imagines the worst for the worst did happen, “El
Pata” was killed.
In the final stanza, the corridista laments the passing of a
great friend commenting that he will always be remembered.
The fiestas are all over as is the never-ending supply of
money which is also cause for lamentation. This stanza lets
the listener know that Cipriano was fast and loose with his
money. One can imagine “El Pata” serving as a great
benefactor for his small town contributing to schools,
hospitals, churches and other causes never failing to share
the riches of his “business” as a good Mexican Robin Hood
should. Cipriano “El Pata” is dead and people on both sides
of the border hope he is in God’s care ends the corrido.
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This narcocorrido exalts the life of a common man who
through guile and boldness was able to wrest the good life
for himself, his family, and his pueblo. He lived life on a
grand scale sharing wealth derived from drug trafficking
even though his lifestyle imperiled him at times and his
beloved son as well. The ending is foreordained as the end is
always the same in narcocorridos- the protagonist dies, often
he is a victim of betrayal, sometimes his death comes at the
hands of law enforcement but always it is a tragic end. In a
narcocorrido, the drug trafficker is immortalized; his name
and story live on in a modern legend. Embedded in such
narcocorridos is the moral lesson that a criminal lifestyle will
only end in sorrow. Entertainment and educational merit as
well as a strong moral lesson are combined in the
narcocorridos so the allure of such Mexican ballads is
undeniable and understandable.
While the narcocorridos do romanticize the outlaw
lifestyle, the moral of these modern legends make it
poignantly clear that the Mexican Robin Hood can only end
in tragedy. The individuals involved in drug trafficking lose
their lives and leave a trail of devastation in their wake. Such
a lifestyle has negative consequences for family members
and friends alike. And, it also impacts larger society
negatively. While the U.S fights to protect its borders and
keep drugs out of this country the truth is that the
Americans crave drugs and are among the largest consumers
of illicit drugs. The United States consumes 60% of the
entire world’s drug supplies even though this nation only
has 5% of the world’s population points out James R. Brown
in his 2002 book on drug diversion courts and these
numbers are still supported by the Bureau of Justice
Statistics (2012).
5. Mexico’s Ban on Narcocorridos
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While music is a cultural universal not all counties
allow their citizens to listen to all types of music as
restrictions vary from country to country.
In 2013, it
highlighted by U.S. Legal.com (“Music Censorship”) that Cole
Porter in 1954 was not allowed to sing the line, “I get no kick
from cocaine” and later Rosemary Clooney’s “Mambo
Italiano” was cited by the American Broadcasting Company
as lacking adequate standards for good taste. The censorship
of music in the U.S. was later expanded to create the Parents
Music Resource Center which eventually resulted in a
ratings system for music. Lyrics that promote violence, use
excessive profane language, contain explicit sexual
references, or degrade women are given a Parental Advisory
(PAL) label today as provided by the Recording Industry
Association for audio records. This label PAL is also available
in a number of other countries including Mexico. Yet, in
2009 Mexico decided that the PAL label was not enough to
warn the public of the dangers of the musical genre known
as narcocorridos and government officials took music
censorship much further than a mere warning label (U.S.
Legal.com
“Music Censorship”). Mexican government
officials pressured radio stations into not playing
narcocorridos maintain Chris Summers and Dominic Bailey.
While the Mexican Senate was unable to pass a law to
completely ban narcocorridos because of freedom of speech
legislation already in place, the Senators did exert
considerable pressure on the Mexican states to accept a
voluntary ban on this musical genre. The Mexican state of
Sinaloa in 2001 announced a voluntary ban on
narcocorridos on the radio and in 2002 Chihuahua bowed to
the pressure. Other Mexican states have quickly followed
suit explain Summers and Bailey.
Why would Mexico forbid these folk ballads and consider
them dangerous enough to ban them from the radio? In
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2013, President Nieto of Mexico told CNN journalist,
Catherine Shoichet that the poor in his country lacked
opportunities of any kind and so people turn to criminal
activity to get out of poverty. President Nieto has created a
new Mexican strategy which centers on creating jobs and
social programs to deal with the poverty in the country and
he has moved away to some extent from emphasizing
combatting the drug cartels as aggressively as was the policy
of his predecessor, President Felipe Calderon. What has been
the impact of the Mexican government’s war against the drug
cartels and of the drug cartels war against each other in the
battle for supremacy?
The Human Rights Watch estimated in 2013 that
hundreds of thousands of people have been killed in the
drug violence between the years 2006 and 2012. The U.S.
Department’s 2013 report to Congress entitled, “2013
International Narcotics Control Strategy Report” revealed
that the U.S. has provided $1.1 billion dollars in aid to
Mexico since 2008 to combat drug trafficking contends
Catherine Shoichet. The death tally in the drug wars
continues unabated as experts challenged the official death
toll of 47,515 revealed in January 2012 according to the New
York journalist, Damien Cave. This number of deaths has
been hotly disputed by U.S. government officials and experts
like Erick Olson, a security expert at the Woodrow Wilson
International Center for Scholars in Washington. Mexican
government officials had at first claimed they could not
reveal the number of crime-related deaths for reasons of
national security and repeatedly stalled both Mexican and
American academics for the requested information. The
Mexican government eventually released an estimate of
47,515 as being the number of Mexicans killed in the drug
wars since 2006. This figure is an underestimate maintains
the Human Rights Watch as they believe the number to be at
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least 60,000 killed in the drug wars between the years 2006
to 2012.
Statistics may be boring but they reveal the extent of the
human tragedy that results from drug trafficking. While the
Human Rights Watch death toll number is only a rough
estimate of the deaths in Mexico due to the drug cartel
battles we have no real estimates of the total devastation on
both sides of the border caused by drug addiction, loss of
productivity, emergency room admissions due to drug
overdoses, the amount of money spent on arrests and
prosecution of drug dealers and drug users, the amount of
money spent on drug interdiction, or an estimate of how
drug trafficking generates violence and more crime, and of
the total number of deaths.
Certainly the poor on both sides of the border are used as
fodder to fuel the manpower needs of the drug cartels. Every
man lost to the drug wars is soon easily replaced as every
man dreams of success, of being able to rise above humble
roots to make a mark on the world, and of being able to
provide for his family, friends, and community in a
substantial manner. Narcocorridos seduce the poor on both
sides of the border who dream about “the good life” as drug
trafficking offers a ready avenue to fulfill those dreams.
Despite the musical inspiration of narcocorridos it is
important to closely examine the boring statistics especially
on this side of the border so Americans can better
understand the dangers highlighted in these simple folk
songs.
6. Drug Use on the National Level and in Texas
The National Household Survey on Drug Abuse for 2012
reported that 42% of all Americans have used an illicit drug
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at least once with marijuana being the most commonly used
drug followed by amphetamines, then hallucinogens such as
LSD, PCP, and MDMA reports the Office of National Drug
Control Policy in their Drug Data Summary for 2013. Among
teens we find a dangerous rise in the use of tobacco and
alcohol which have been termed the “gateway” drugs that
often lead to the use of more dangerous drugs such as
cocaine argue Jeffrey Merrill et al. in their 1994 report. A
study carried out by Columbia University’s Center on
Addiction and Substance Abuse found that teens who smoke
marijuana are eighty-five times more likely to move on to
cocaine maintains the Office of National Drug Control Policy.
Lloyd D. Johnson and his colleagues found in the
Monitoring the Future Study in 2012 that the use of illicit
drugs went up 150% from 1991 to 2011. While the
prevalence of drug use is high it is still not as high as the
levels experiences in the 1970s yet it is alarming that half of
all high school students use illicit drugs by the time they
turn eighteen years of age has lamented Johnson and his
colleagues.
The Texas Commission of Alcohol and Drug Use in 2013
reported that 34% of all students grades 7-12 have used an
illicit drug at some time and that 16% used a drug in the
month prior to the study. The most popular drugs, in order
of preference, for Texas secondary students are marijuana,
inhalants, downers, and uppers.
Drug use is often
intertwined with criminal activity as evidenced by a finding
that 84% of youths confined to the Texas Youth Center had
used drugs in the year prior to their commitment noted
Richard Allen Burns. Drug traffickers are well aware of the
American appetite for illicit drugs and they have no trouble
selling the wares they smuggle across the border. It matters
little to them that so many people become addicted and that
the young fall prey to the seduction of their wares.
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7. Drug Seizures in the U.S. with Special Attention
given Texas
The numbers involved in the seizures of drugs on a
national scale are dramatic. In 2012, a total of 2,412,315
pounds of marijuana was seized in the United States while
225,122 pounds of cocaine were confiscated as were 6,900
pounds of heroin according to the U.S Department of
Homeland Security’s report entitled Southwest Border Points
of Entry for 2013. The amount of confiscated drugs is only a
drop in the bucket as criminal justice professionals agree
that the border is a sieve and large quantities of drugs pass
over each day. Drug traffickers expect a certain amount of
their wares to be seizes and they see such confiscations as a
simple hazard of their business.
Even on a county level the drug seizure statistics are
staggering. The Crime in McAllen 2012 report noted that
88,677 pounds of marijuana were seized in Hidalgo County
by the Combined Governmental Drug Enforcement and
Special Crimes Task Force while 3,103 grams of cocaine
were seized as were 258 grams of black tar heroin among
other drugs. Texas has 624 miles of coastline and 1,254
miles of international border which makes the State
particularly vulnerable to drug traffickers. The border areas
of the State simply cannot be monitored around-the-clock by
criminal justice agencies. The Southwest border is 2,000
miles long and has 38 commercial and passenger ports
besides the innumerable passible points by water craft or on
foot as is noted by the Office of National Drug Control Policy
in 2013. For the fiscal year 2012 alone, 3.4 million trucks,
84 million cars, and 232 million people came through the
commercial and passenger ports yet not even an estimate is
offered as to the number of illegal crossing made yearly. The
heavy volume of legitimate border traffic also facilitates drug
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smugglers. Drug traffickers commonly use commercial
trucks and private vehicles to move their cargo. Texas is an
especially attractive state for drug traffickers reports the
National Drug Intelligence Center (2012) as besides the
vehicle and human mule movement of drugs pilots fly into
the state to use abandoned airstrips or isolated roads to
unload their illicit wares. Drug traffickers use buses, trains,
and package delivery services to move their wares into Texas
for eventual distribution across the nation reveals the
National Drug Intelligence Center.
The Federal-wide Drug Seizure System (FDSS) data reveal
that most illicit drugs are seized at the borders of Texas and
that these seizures are the largest of any other state noted
the U.S Customs and Border Protection in 2012. The FDSS
collects data on drug seizures made by the FBI, DEA, U.S
Customs, U.S Border Patrol, and the U.S Coast Guard.
Texas ranks first in the seizures for cocaine and marijuana
and is second for the seizure of methamphetamines and is
ranked third for the amount of heroin confiscated by law
enforcement personnel. Seizures for cocaine totaled 16,431
kilograms for Texas while marijuana seizures totaled
607,995 kilograms for 2012. Totals for methamphetamine
seizures in Texas were 577 kilograms and 281 kilograms for
heroin reported U.S Customs and Border Protection in 2012.
8. Drug-Related Deaths in the Nation and Texas
As the world’s largest drug consumers Americans pay a
heavy price in terms of drug-related deaths due to accidental
and intentional overdose. Drug-related emergency room
visits continue to increase yearly as evidenced in reports
from 2009 to 2012 in which hospital admissions rose from
635,460 to 808,233 (DAWN 2010). Furthermore, the Office of
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National Drug Control Policy (2013) in their Drug Data
Summary has estimated that 50,000 drug-related deaths
annually. In 2012 there were 538 drug-related deaths in
Texas and approximately 3,588 phone calls were made that
year to the Texas Poison Control Centers as reported by the
Gulf Coast Addiction Technology and Treatment Center.
Deaths from drug abuse are tabulated by the Drug Abuse
Warning Network (DAWN 2010) estimates data gathered
from 43 metropolitan areas and this source found that Los
Angeles had the most deaths due to overdoses at 1,192.
The federal government sponsors the collection of
emergency room episodes due to drug use as well as medical
examiner reports on all drug-related deaths under the
auspices of DAWN (2010) which has identified the social
characteristics of those who have died due to drug use. Men
are three times as likely as women to die from drug-related
causes while Whites (58%) comprise the majority of drugrelated deaths. In such deaths, 1 in 8 were Hispanic and 1 in
5 were black. Most drug-related deaths (75%) were listed by
DAWN (2010) to be due to multiple drug use with the most
common
combination
being
a
mix
of
cocaine,
heroin/morphine, narcotic analgesics, and alcohol. While
DAWN gives us some idea as to the numbers of Americans
seeking medical attention due to drug abuse and the drugrelated deaths that result this source of government
statistics fails to provide an accurate account of such
statistics due to the limited number of cities they gather
information
from
and
other
recording
problems.
Nevertheless, the statistics we do have are somber.
9. Drug Trafficking Generates Violence and More
Crime
The Bureau of Justice Statistics for 2012 highlights the
fact that drug trafficking breeds violent crime due to the
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competition over the drug market, disputes between dealers
or between sellers and buyers as well as murders over the
theft of drugs, drug scams, or punishment for the theft or
shortchanging of money. The FBI reported that in 2012, 5%
of all 14,827 homicides for the year were drug-related. These
homicides occurred during drug transactions or the
manufacturing of drugs. The peak year for drug-related
homicides was 1989 when 7% of the 18,954 deaths were
attributed to the crack epidemic as noted in the Uniform
Crime Report for 2003.
Besides fueling homicides, drug trafficking accelerates
criminal activity due to drug addiction. The Bureau of
Justice Statistics (2012) has reported that 1 in 4 convicted
property offenders had committed crimes to get money for
drugs. Acquiring money for drugs was also the reason given
by 19% of State prisoners and 16% of Federal prisoners for
their offenses. Not only are these individuals committing
crimes to acquire more drugs but over half were high while
committing their offences (BJJS 2012). Whether drug
addiction leads to crime or crime leads to drug addiction, the
two are intertwined.
10. Drug Trafficking Arrests
The country’s drug laws are enforced by federal, state,
and local criminal justice agencies. The Uniform Crime
Reports produced by the FBI for 2012 estimated that
1,538,800 local and state arrests for drug abuse violations
had occurred through the nation. While most arrests are for
drug possession, one-fifth of such arrests are for drug
trafficking and manufacturing. The area of the country with
the highest percentage of arrests for the sale/manufacture of
drugs according to the FBI (2012) is the Northeast (29%)
while the Midwest accounts for 23% of such arrests, 17% of
these arrests are made in the South, and 16% in the West
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Dr. Delilah Dotremon & Dr. Ruben Gonzalez
(totals add up to less that 100% due to rounding). From
1990 to 2012, drug offenders have swelled the growth of
State prison populations by 30%. These drug offenders serve
an average of 27 months as only 43% of such sentences are
typically served in the State prisons. Drug traffickers, on the
other hand, made up 99% of the drug offender population in
Federal prisons in 2012 and serve a greater portion of their
sentences than those in State prison (FBI 2012).
Last year there were 912 juveniles arrested for the sale of
manufactured of illicit drugs in Texas and 13,413 adults
were arrested on the same charges according to the Texas
Department of Public Safety (2013). The Office of National
Drug Control Policy (2013) in their Drug Data Summary has
estimated that the overall cost to society due to drug abuse
is well over $160 billion in terms of money spent on buying
illicit drugs, health care costs, productivity losses, housing
drug offenders and drug traffickers in correctional facilities,
among other expenses. These mind-numbing numbers do
not become part of the lyrics of the narcocorridos, only the
dead bodies do.
11. The Cultural Importance of Narcocorridos
The music of the borderlands centers on the lives of the
people which includes their joys, their hardships, their
triumphs, and their tragedies. While the narcocorridos may
embellish the truth a bit, one can argue that they serve as a
cultural lesson for all people. The narcocorridos bring home
the message that it is possible to rise above poverty, to
achieve material success, to outwit the King and his men, to
do some good deeds for your people, but if you are on the
wrong side of the law it will only be a short matter of time
before you become a legend. Containing part fiction and part
truth, the narcocorridos impart valuable cultural impact as
they are used as a form of daily entertainment that provides
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Pakistan’s 3rd Military Adventure: Consolidating Authoritarianism
an education about the harsh realities of the criminal
lifestyle.
Folk ballads like other songs touch different chords
within each listener. For some, narcocorridos are catchy
songs that provide a good opportunity to dance or serve as a
backdrop to play cards or just enjoy the company of family
and friends along with good food and drink. For the families
that commission a ballad about their loved one who was lost
in the drug wars the narcocorrido is an expression of love
and an opportunity to memorialize a relative or friend. Yet,
for many of the young, the desperately poor, the ignorant,
and the dreamers the narcococorridos spell out the formula
to achieve success. There are many powerful cultural themes
that run through these folk ballads. Overcoming the poor
hand that life has dealt you is one of these strong themes as
listeners get the unequivocal message that even the most
common man can with courage, guns, and drugs transform
his life. Anyone can grab with both hands all that his heart
desires. Another strong cultural theme in narcocorridos is
the Robin Hood angle as drug trafficking presents the
opportunity not only to better your station in life but to
reach out to help your family and friends and also lift them
up from poverty. Like the fabled Robin Hood, the drug
trafficker can share his ill-gotten gains and actually perform
good deeds for his entire community. How enticing are those
cultural themes? And, if things do not work out you still get
to live large for a while and become immortalized in a
narcocorrido.
The journalists Chris Summers and Dominic Bailey point
out that despite the ban, the BBC has acknowledged that in
the past 30 years the biggest growth in the Mexican musical
world has been in the popularity of narcocorridos. Mexican
government officials consider these folk ballads about drug
traffickers to be dangerous as they glamorize the drug trade
701
Dr. Delilah Dotremon & Dr. Ruben Gonzalez
contends Elijah Wald who has written several books on
narcocorridos. Summers and Bailey have highlighted the fact
that the U.S. market for narcocorridos is worth $300 million
a year and that Los Angeles is the distribution hub for this
music in this country. Government officials on both sides of
the border believe that narcocorridos seduce the young, the
poor, and the powerless into a life of crime. Radio bans and
parental advisory labels will not quell the desire of the people
to hear these folk ballads. Some believe that these ballads
can serve as a handy moral compass while still providing a
momentary sharing of empowerment for listeners of
narcocorridos. The ending for the Mexican Robin Hood or the
Mexican-American Robin Hood is always the same as there
are no fairy tale endings in these border ballads. Yet,
musical censorship in all its forms will never stamp out the
desire to dream and be immortal. Americo Paredes (1958) in
his overview of Mexican history traced how folk ballads have
long been a staple of the Mexican diet since the Mexican War
of Independence (1810-1821) and the Mexican Revolution
(1910-1921) when peasants fought to overthrow their
Spanish and French rulers to live free and to reap the
rewards of what hard work and courage can achieve. Those
desires remain strong as the poor today still fight and claw
their way to a better life and no method of musical
censorship nor the consequences of the war on drugs will
end those strivings.
Despite the inspirational, entertainment, and cultural
value of these musical expressions we must keep in mind
the somber statistics of the harm caused by drug trafficking
and drug use to people on both sides of the border and in
particular the devastation caused the young. We must
address reality. Folk ballads about drug traffickers do not
awaken the desire to use drugs as that is an issue we must
address head-on. What can we do to combat the desire to
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consume drugs? That is a question that we must find new
ways to address if we are to make headway. What can we do
about the continued popularity of narcocorridos? Whether
Mexican or American parents or government officials on both
sides of the border like it or not, the drug trafficker will
continue to live on in the musical ballads of the borderlands.
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